Whatever flotsam and jetsam of the web that I collect from the polluted rolling waves of the surf.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Sharks and Tasers

Dual post today ~ one vexation and the other vindication.

First, the story is that a shark was caught in the Euphrates River about 200km from the sea. Locals blame the U.S. military for placing the shark in the river: "Tahseen Ali, a teacher, said there was a '75 percent chance' Americans had put the shark in the water. 'This is very frightening for us. Our children always swim in the river and I believe that there are more sharks. I believe that America is behind this matter,' said fisherman Hatim Karim." I hope that they found the most paranoid teacher and deluded fisherman to quote, because if these types of assumptions are commonplace in Iraq, then we are apparently seen as three-headed demons there.

Second, the funny tasering incident returns with what I believe to be the proper result. Mr. Meyer avoids further charges by apologizing to the University for breaking the rules of the forum and agreeing to 18 months of probation: "I'm so sorry that I lost my control in that auditorium," he wrote. "I went there to ask an important question. The question of voter disenfranchisement in America cuts to the heart of our democracy, and my failure to act calmly resulted in this important town forum ending without the discourse intended. For that, I am truly sorry." He seems much more intelligent when he's not hijacking a Q&A to turn it into his own personal soapbox.